Publications by authors named "K Himuro"
Article Synopsis
- Dysphagia, a common symptom in patients with myasthenia gravis (MG), is linked to muscle weakness and a lack of coordination in swallowing and breathing.
- The study recorded breathing patterns and muscle activity during swallowing in 10 MG patients and 22 healthy controls, finding significant differences in their respiratory patterns.
- These findings suggest that monitoring breathing and muscle activity can effectively indicate the severity of swallowing difficulties in MG patients, particularly after treatment.
Article Synopsis
- Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disorder that affects muscle communication, and researchers are exploring the potential of pentraxin 3 (PTX3) as a biological marker for disease activity.
- Serum PTX3 levels were measured in both MG patients and healthy controls, with findings indicating that while there wasn't a significant difference in PTX3 levels between the groups, PTX3 did correlate moderately with various MG severity scores.
- The study suggests that PTX3 could be a relevant indicator of neuromuscular junction damage in MG patients, potentially aiding in understanding the disease's progression.
Objective: To examine the impact of acquisition time on Lutetium-177 (Lu) single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) images using Monte Carlo simulation.
Methods: A gamma camera simulation based on the Monte Carlo method was performed to produce SPECT images. The phantom was modeled on a NEMA IEC BODY phantom including six spheres as tumors.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigated how quickly patients with AChR antibody-positive generalized myasthenia gravis (MG) could achieve a treatment status called "minimal manifestation" (MM) and the factors affecting this.
- A retrospective analysis was conducted on 93 patients over 3 years, tracking symptoms, treatment, and the achievement of MM.
- About 60% of patients reached MM status by 3 months and 90% by 2 years, with more frequent plasmapheresis and higher doses of prednisolone making it harder to achieve a lower dosage goal by 2 years.
Rate of change in acetylcholine receptor antibody levels predicts myasthenia gravis outcome.
J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry
September 2021
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how changes in anti-acetylcholine receptor antibody (AChR Ab) levels after immunosuppressive treatment relate to the long-term prognosis of myasthenia gravis (MG) patients one year later.
- Researchers analyzed 53 AChR Ab-positive MG patients, measuring their antibody levels again within 100 days of starting treatment to assess the reduction rate of these antibodies.
- Results showed that patients with a higher reduction rate of AChR Ab were more likely to achieve a better clinical status and had lower MG-related activity scores after one year, indicating that early antibody level measurements can help predict treatment outcomes.